Department for Transport

High Speed 2 Railway Line

lord berkeley: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Sugg on 6 March (HL5576), whether any of the following items are included in the long-term fund envelope for HS2 phase 1: (1) the associated roadworks necessary for the Birmingham interchange station around the M6, M42 and A45; (2) the people carrier between Birmingham Curzon Street station and adjacent areas; (3) the traction service and maintenance depot at Washwood Heath; (4) the infrastructure maintenance depot at Calvert, with chord to East–West railway; (5) the bridge across East–West railway; (6) the movement and rebuilding of the Heathrow Express depot at Old Oak Common; and (7) the movement and rebuilding of the GWR sleeper maintenance depot from Old Oak Common to Reading and Penzance; and ifany of those items are not so included,to which budget the costs are allocated.

baroness sugg: All items that are referenced in the question, except item two, form part of the HS2 Phase One scheme which was approved by Parliament in February 2017 and as such are included in the funding envelope for the HS2 project. HS2 Phase 1 does not include provision for a people carrier between Birmingham Curzon Street and adjacent areas. Birmingham City Council and the West Midlands Combined Authority are progressing plans to expand the tram network including the provision of a metro stop at the HS2 Curzon Street station. A people mover at Birmingham Interchange station linking to the existing International station the NEC and Birmingham Airport is part of the HS2 Phase One project.

Aviation: USA

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to address concerns regarding the UK’s capability to secure an open skies treaty with the US.

baroness sugg: Discussions are being held with the US about new, bilateral, air services arrangements that will apply after the current EU-US Air Transport Agreement ceases to apply to the UK. Discussions have been positive and we have made significant progress. Both sides want to conclude these discussions soon.All parties have a shared interest in ensuring that existing rights will continue under the new bilateral arrangements, allowing airlines on both sides of the Atlantic to continue to operate existing services as well as to develop new ones.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Banks: Company Accounts

baroness bowles of berkhamsted: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Henley on 5 March (HL5823), why banking solvency would not be a matter for the Financial Reporting Council to deal with as well as a Financial Services Authority matter given that the capital maintenance and dividend distribution regime contained in the CompaniesAct 2006 applies to all companies incorporated under that Act, whether banks or not.

lord henley: As stated in the reply given to the noble Baroness on 5th March 2018 to Question HL5823, the Financial Reporting Council is not responsible for the prudential regulation of banks.

Company Accounts

baroness bowles of berkhamsted: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Henley on 5 March (HL5822), what assessment they have made of whether the fact that ease of comparison and preparation took precedence over the public safety, creditor protection and solvency position of companies accounts, including those companies that are banks, had the ingredients of regulatory capture by virtue of expedient outcome taking precedence over the public interest.

lord henley: No assessment has been made on this. The Government consults extensively on all aspects of company law to ensure that it properly reflects the public interest.

Banks: Company Accounts

baroness bowles of berkhamsted: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Henley on 5 March (HL5823),in which month and year the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) firstbecame aware of"the contribution thatcertain features of the International Accounting Standards made to the problem of the capital adequacy of the banks"; when the FRC first informed Parliament; and bywhat means Parliament was informed.

lord henley: The Financial Reporting Council is not responsible for banking supervision.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Bahrain: Overseas Aid

lord scriven: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by the Minister of State for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on 11 December 2017 (HC116299 and HC116302) regarding the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's £1.52 million funding for overseas aid to Bahrain, with whichUK bodiesthe FCO contracted to implement the technical assistance programme in Bahrain for the 2017–18 financial year.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The Government works with a number of implementation partners and beneficiaries to support Bahraini-led reform. These programmes aim to support progress on building effective and accountable institutions, strengthening the rule of law, and justice reform. All of our work is in line with international standards, and aims to share the UK's expertise and experience. Any training provided by, on or behalf of, the British Government fully complies with our domestic and international human rights obligations.

Bahrain: Overseas Aid

lord scriven: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by the Minister of State for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on 11 December 2017 (HC116299 and HC116302) regarding the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's £1.52 million funding for overseas aid to Bahrain, which Bahraini bodies will benefit from the funding for the 2017–18 financial year.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The Government works with a number of implementation partners and beneficiaries to support Bahraini-led reform. These programmes aim to support progress on building effective and accountable institutions, strengthening the rule of law, and justice reform. All of our work is in line with international standards, and aims to share the UK's expertise and experience. Any training provided by, or on behalf of, the British Government fully complies with our domestic and international human rights obligations.

Najah al-Sheikh

lord scriven: To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Bahrain with respect to the alleged torture and sexual assault of female activist Najah al-Sheikh; and what assessment they have made of whether she faces serious charges based on coerced confessions.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The UK has a continuing dialogue with the Government of Bahrain in which we raise individual cases. Our Embassy in Bahrain monitors this specific case. The UK encourages those with concerns about treatment in detention to report these to the relevant human rights oversight bodies. We urge these bodies to carry out swift and thorough investigations. The UK continues to encourage the Government of Bahrain to deliver on its international and domestic human rights commitments.

Israel: Arabic

baroness whitaker: To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Israel regarding the restoration of Arabic as an official state language.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: Arabic is an official language of the State of Israel.

Attorney General

British Nationals Abroad: Syria

lord blencathra: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Keen of Elie on 7 March (HL5766), whether they will set out whatthey regard asthe public interest in prosecuting UK citizens who fought against ISIL forces in Syria, and not prosecuting those who fought against UK-backed forces in Syria.

lord keen of elie: The decision to prosecute UK citizens who fought in Syria is taken independently of Government by the CPS with the permission of the Attorney General as the guardian of the public interest where required by statute. The public interest in prosecuting these cases is considered on a case by case basis taking account of the factors set out in the Code for Crown Prosecutors and the surrounding circumstances. There is no policy of prosecuting those who fought against ISIL forces and not prosecuting those who fought against UK-backed forces.

Department of Health and Social Care

Prescription Drugs: Misuse

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many withdrawal centres and aftercare facilities for prescribed drugs dependency to benzodiazepines, Z-drugs, SSRIs and opiate painkillers have been opened within the last ten years.

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have for the NHS to develop dedicated withdrawal centres for the use of iatrogenic-induced addiction and dependent patients.

lord o'shaughnessy: Public Health England does not centrally hold information on the numbers of drug treatment centres or aftercare facilities for prescribed drugs dependency to benzodiazepines, Z-drugs, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors and opiate painkillers which have been opened in the past 10 years.Plans to develop treatment for any problem with prescribed medicines are the responsibility of local authorities (LAs) and the National Health Service in each area. LAs assess their local need and commission services and interventions to meet that need.

Prescription Drugs

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they collectstatistics on the numbers of long-term prescribed patients on (1) benzodiazepines and (2) Z-drugs; if so, what those statistics are;and if not, why not.

lord o'shaughnessy: This data is not collected centrally. Medicines data collected by NHS Digital does not contain patient related information, so is unable to identify statistics on the numbers of long-term prescribed patients on benzodiazepines and Z-drugs.The Government is concerned about the impact of long term use of prescription drugs. The Department has commissioned Public Health England (PHE) to undertake an evidence review to better understand the scope of the problem of prescribed drug dependence. As part of this review PHE will attempt to estimate the number of people affected, including through prescription data collected by NHS Business Services Authority.

Prescription Drugs

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government what guidance they have issued on the duration of time they consider appropriate in describing "long-term prescribing" in relation to benzodiazepines and Z-drugs.

lord o'shaughnessy: The Department has not issued any guidance.The Department has commissioned Public Health England to undertake an evidence review to better understand the scope of the problem of prescribed drug dependence.The review will bring together the best available evidence on: prevalence and prescribing; the nature and likely causes of dependence or withdrawal among some people who continue to take these medicines; and effective prevention and treatment responses for each indication.

Prescription Drugs

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to make the 1988 CSM guidelines concerning the prescription of benzodiazepines and Z-drugs of two to four weeks mandatory for future patients prescribed those drugs.

lord o'shaughnessy: The guidance from the Committee on Safety of Medicines regarding the recommended duration of use for benzodiazepines and Z-drugs was incorporated into the terms of the licences for these products and reflected in the product information which consists of the Summary of Product Characteristics for healthcare professionals and the patient information leaflet supplied in each package of the medicine.In making a prescribing decision, clinicians must weigh the potential benefits of the medicine in the condition being treated, against any risks of possible side effects in the individual patient, taking into account all warnings and precautions described in the product information.Clinicians can use their clinical judgement to prescribe a medicine to patients if they consider it to be in the patient’s best interest. This is defined as “off label” prescribing and refers to the use of a medicine outside the terms defined in the product licence. If a clinician decides that in their clinical opinion a patient will benefit from “off label” use of a medicine they are free to prescribe it. However, if a clinician does prescribe in this manner they are responsible for the patient’s care and the consequences of the treatment.

Mefloquine

the countess of mar: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord O'Shaughnessy on 18 January (HL4484), whether they consider the completed "cases of suicide", listed in the current mefloquine product information leaflet as reported psychiatric adverse reactions to the drug, to be permanent.

lord o'shaughnessy: In the context of an adverse reaction to a medicine, suicide is a possible outcome of suicidal ideation, rather than necessarily an adverse reaction to treatment. For mefloquine, the current assessment, as recommended by the European Medicines Agency's Pharmacovigilance Risk Assessment Committee, is that whilst psychiatric side effects, including suicidal ideation, may persist after stopping treatment, current evidence does not support that these may be permanent after stopping treatment.

Vitamin D

baroness masham of ilton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impactof lack of access to prescription-based vitamin D onthe long-term bone health of people who have low, or no, exposure to the sun.

lord o'shaughnessy: As part of the NHS England consultation Conditions for which over the counter items should not routinely be prescribed in primary care: A consultation on guidance for CCGs, NHS England has published a full Equality and Health Inequalities Impact Assessment, Equality and Health Inequalities – Full Analysis Form – Conditions for which over the counter items should not routinely be prescribed in primary care, which covers groups protected by the Equality Act 2010. Copies of both documents are attached.In the summer months most people should be able to get all the vitamin D they need from sunlight on the skin. However, it is also found in some foods – oily fish, red meat, liver, egg yolks and fortified foods, such as most fat spreads and some breakfast cereals.The Advisory Committee on Borderline Substances states that vitamins and minerals should be prescribed only in the management of actual or potential vitamin or mineral deficiency, and are not to be prescribed as dietary supplements. We understand that NHS England’s current consultation is in line with this. Prescribing vitamin D for maintenance would be classed as a treatment for prevention or as a dietary supplement.



OTC Guidance
(PDF Document, 589.82 KB)




Equality and Health Inequalities Impact Assessment
(PDF Document, 932.6 KB)

Drugs: Misuse

lord patel of bradford: To ask Her Majesty's Government, in the light of the report Our Invisible Addicts by the Royal College of Psychiatrists and the reported rise in the rates of drug related deaths, whether they plan to carry out a national review of the relationship between service users over 40 participating in structured addiction treatment and those users’ engagement with primary, community and adult social care services.

lord o'shaughnessy: There are no plans to carry out a review into this specific issue. Public Health England (PHE) has already led an inquiry into the rises in drug-related deaths. The inquiry report Understanding and preventing drug-related deaths: The report of a national expert working group to investigate drug-related death in England was published on 9 September 2016 and a copy is attached.PHE continues to support local authorities in delivering tailored, accessible and effective services where people stand the best chance of recovery.In 2017, PHE published updated clinical guidelines for clinicians treating people with drug use problems, which contains a section addressing the importance of preventing and treating drug use problems in older people. The guidelines were developed by an expert group and are kept under regular review. A copy of the Drug Misuse and dependence: UK guidelines on clinical management is attached.



HL6163-clinical_guidelines_2017
(PDF Document, 2.36 MB)




HL6163-Understanding-preventing-drug-deaths-2016
(PDF Document, 356.37 KB)

Prescription Drugs: Safety

lord rennard: To ask Her Majesty's Government, in the context of the medication and error programme outlined in the Report of the Short Life Working Group on reducing medication-related harm published on 23 February,which indicators will be included in phase one of the medicines safety dashboard being developed by NHS Digital and the NHS Business Services Authority.

lord o'shaughnessy: The purpose of the indicators is to highlight prescribing practice that may increase the risk of harm and that is associated with admission to hospital. Phase one includes a total of six indicators; five looking at higher risk prescribing that results in admission to hospital with a gastro-intestinal bleed (four indicators and one composite) and one looking at higher risk prescribing that results in admission associated with acute kidney injury.

Prescription Drugs: Safety

lord rennard: To ask Her Majesty's Government, in the context of the medication and error programme outlined in the Report of the Short Life Working Group on reducing medication-related harm, when phase one of the medicines safety dashboard being developed by NHS Digital and the NHS Business Services Authority will be published.

lord o'shaughnessy: Phase one will be published in spring 2018.

Prescription Drugs: Safety

lord rennard: To ask Her Majesty's Government, in the context of the medication and error programme outlined in the Report of the Short Life Working Group on reducing medication-related harm, how many additional phases will be developed as part of the medicines safety dashboard being developed by NHS Digital and theNHS Business Services Authority.

lord o'shaughnessy: The intention is to develop a second phase of indicators covering other medicines, risks of harm and reasons for admission. At this point the number of indicators is not yet agreed nor timescale for publication, but publication is likely to be before the end of 2018.

Department for Education

Higher Education: Equality

baroness falkner of margravine: To ask Her Majesty's Government what (1) direction, and (2) guidance, they have given to the Office for Students on improving gender and ethnic diversity in the leadership of Russell Group higher education institutions.

viscount younger of leckie: Autonomous higher education providers, including Russell Group members, are responsible for their own decisions about leadership appointments. Institutional autonomy is explicitly recognised in the Higher Education and Research Act 2017 and is specifically defined to include the freedom of providers to determine the criteria for selecting, appointing or dismissing academic staff. The Act is clear that both the Office for Students (OfS) (when carrying out its functions) and the Secretary of State (when issuing statutory guidance to the OfS) must have regard to the need to protect this institutional autonomy. The government and the OfS both remain interested in areas related to equality and diversity in higher education. We consulted on behalf of the OfS on making arrangements for the publication of data on senior staff remuneration, including in relation to gender and ethnicity. The OfS retains the power to require the disclosure of such information through its accounts direction. The government asked the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE), the predecessor of OfS, to remind HEFCE-funded providers of their obligations under the gender pay gap reporting requirements. HEFCE wrote to these providers on 10 January 2018. HEFCE have also jointly commissioned a project that aims to equalise the gender balance and ethnic diversity of higher education governing bodies. This work will include establishing an online exchange to recruit board members. In addition, we note initiatives across the sector, including at Russell Group institutions, to support women and those from black and minority ethnic groups who aspire to leadership positions in higher education.

Faith Schools: Admissions

lord taverne: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the poll conducted by Populus showing that 67 per cent of Catholics, 71 per cent of Christians overall, and 60 per cent of the public as a whole, support keeping the 50 per cent cap on faith-based admissions to religious schools, (2) figuresset out inthe official 2016 schools censusshowing that Church of England and other Christian free schools subject to that cap take more then three times as many pupils from Asian backgrounds as Church of England and other Christian schools that select all their places on religious grounds, (3) the extent to which Catholic state schools in England select all their places on the basis of religion, and (4) whether new Catholic schools can be opened when that cap is in place; and whether they intend to review their policy ofabolishing that cap.

lord agnew of oulton: The department will consider a range of evidence, including opinion polls and official statistics, as part of the process for deciding how to take forward the proposals contained in the ‘Schools that work for everyone’ consultation including in relation to the 50% cap on faith admissions.The department does not collect information about the level of use of faith oversubscription criteria in any school.The department is considering proposals on the future of the 50% cap and will respond in due course.

Degrees: Standards

lord storey: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the rating of degree courses as gold, silver or bronze will also apply to those private colleges offering higher education degrees.

lord storey: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether private colleges that offer higher education degrees will be rated as gold, silver or bronze in the same way as universities.

viscount younger of leckie: Private colleges offering higher education degrees can participate in the Teaching Excellence and Student Outcomes Framework (TEF) if they meet the eligibility requirements. From the 2019-20 academic year, TEF will be a condition of registration for providers with more than 500 students on higher education courses. Smaller providers, for whom the cost of participation might be disproportionate, may participate on a voluntary basis if they meet the eligibility criteria.

Degrees: Standards

lord storey: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the rating of degree courses as gold, silver or bronze will apply to overseas universities established by UK universities.

viscount younger of leckie: The delivery of UK ratings or awards to overseas campuses of UK providers is outside the scope of the Teaching Excellence and Student Outcomes Framework (TEF), as set out in the attached TEF specification.



Teaching Excellence and Student Outcomes Framework
(PDF Document, 618.07 KB)

Ministry of Justice

Carillion: Insolvency

lord bassam of brighton: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Young of Cookham on 27 February (HL4733), whether a minute of the discussion on Carillion’s financial position was prepared following that company’s meeting with the then Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Ministry of Justice in October 2017; whether, following that meeting, they made any assessment of Carillion’s ability to continue with Government contracts; and whether (1) the Secretary of State for Justice, and (2) the Prime Minister, were advised of Carillion’s likely failure following that meeting.

lord bassam of brighton: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Young of Cookham on 27 February (HL4733), who attended the meeting between Carillion and the then Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Ministry of Justice in October 2017.

lord bassam of brighton: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Young of Cookham on 27 February (HL4733), whether, following the meeting between Carillion and the then Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Ministry of Justice in October 2017, other Government departments with Carillion contracts were alerted to likely contract failures and the company’s precarious financial position.

lord keen of elie: Senior officials from Ministry of Justice and Her Majesty’s Prison & Probation Service were present at the meeting between Carillion and the then Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) in October 2017. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the performance of Carillion in delivering facilities management services to 50 prison establishments in the Southern England prison estate. A note of the meeting was taken, as with all Ministerial meetings. The meeting focussed upon performance, compliance and opportunities for rehabilitation. The information that was discussed at the meeting was either already known by Government or it was information that was in the wider public domain.

Legal Costs

lord vinson: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the cost of litigation; (2) the extent to which this is related to fees charged by lawyers; and (3) the existence of a genuine competitive market to ensure that such fees are set at a level that is fair and reasonable.

lord keen of elie: The Government does not hold data on the legal fees charged by lawyers to their clients, which are private matters. The Government does, however, continue to have concerns about the costs of civil litigation that may be recovered from a losing party. These recoverable costs, if not fixed, are agreed between the parties or determined by the court at the end of the case. We have taken action on these recoverable costs in recent years, largely implementing the recommendations of Sir Rupert Jackson’s ‘Review of Civil Litigation Costs: Final Report’, published in January 2010, including in Part 2 of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012, in April 2013.Sir Rupert’s ‘Supplemental Report: Fixed Recoverable Costs’, published in July 2017 recommended extending fixing the recoverable costs in all civil cases up to £25,000 damages, and in less complex cases up to £100,000 damages. The Government is considering the report and will set out the way forward in due course.

Aiding and Abetting

lord beecham: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of concerns about the application of the principle of joint enterprise in criminal cases; and whether they intend (1) to initiate a review of the state of the law in this area, and (2) to collect and publish statistics of murder and other cases in which that principle has been applied since 2014.

lord keen of elie: This Government does not believe that any changes to the law on joint enterprise are currently needed, but will keep the matter under review. The Supreme Court judgment in R v Jogee amended the law in this area and it is for our independent courts to interpret the law, as laid down by the Supreme Court. The Crown Prosecution Service has amended its guidance on secondary liability for prosecutors in line with the Jogee judgment, and has consulted on that guidance which aims to provide a clear direction for prosecutors in this area of law. The Ministry of Justice only collects information on how many defendants are prosecuted and convicted for each offence in any given year. Information is not collated on whether a prosecution or conviction relied on the law of joint enterprise. Such information may be held on court records, but could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. Going forward the collection of data on joint enterprise cases is being considered as part of the Common Platform Programme. The Common Platform aims to provide a single case management system that will enable the sharing of evidence and case information across the Criminal Justice System.

Prisoners on Remand: Females

lord bradley: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many women were remanded in custody whilst a psychiatric report was prepared for the court in each of the last five years.

lord keen of elie: This information is not held centrally and can only be obtained at disproportionate cost. Significant information is held on individual court files but is not reported to the MoJ due to its size and complexity. This information would need to be individually inspected to see whether or not remand pending a psychiatric report had taken place in each case.

Treasury

Children: Day Care

lord watson of invergowrie: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of reducing eligibility for Employer Supported Childcare on access to childcare for working parents.

lord bates: The eligibility criteria for Employer-Supported Childcare has not been reduced. We are gradually replacing Employer-Supported Childcare with Tax-Free Childcare which will extend eligibility for childcare support to nearly 1 million more families.

Ministry of Defence

Russia: Nuclear Weapons

lord judd: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their assessment of the new Russian nuclear weapons announced in the speech by President Putin to the Russian Federal Assembly on 1 March; and to what degree their introduction alters the strategic military balance in Europe.

earl howe: We regret that the Kremlin's focus is not working for strategic stability, but this announcement demonstrates why the UK cannot relax its guard. We remain completely confident in our minimum, credible, independent nuclear deterrent. We will continue to keep our nuclear posture under review in the light of the international security environment and the actions of all potential adversaries.

Defence: Finance

the marquess of lothian: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is theirassessment of thecomments by Rear Admiral Alex Burton, former Commander UK Maritime Forces, that without higher spending on defence as a percentage of GDP, the UK’s military credibility and ability to fight and win on the front line will be affected.

earl howe: The commitment to spend at least two per cent of GDP on defence came following a thorough examination of threats and risks, after which the Government decided on an appropriate level of funding. This budget will rise by at least 0.5% above inflation every year of this Parliament. Defence is committed to ensuring the British Armed Forces can continue to make their crucial contribution to Britain's status as a global power and to British security and prosperity. The Modernising Defence Programme aims to modernise Defence, to deliver better military capability and value for money. This will involve reviewing the capabilities that we require to address the threats that we are facing, both now and in the future.

Gibraltar: Navy

lord northbrook: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the future presence and activity of the Royal Navy in the Strait of Gibraltar.

lord northbrook: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many Royal Navy visits to Gibraltar have taken place in the last six months.

lord northbrook: To ask Her Majesty's Government what are their proposals for future investment in the Royal Navy base in Gibraltar.

earl howe: The Ministry of Defence continually reassesses the Royal Navy's mission in the Strait of Gibraltar, and the assets and people required to deliver it, to ensure that the UK Government's responsibilities can be carried out effectively and can meet evolving threats and future needs. The Royal Navy's Gibraltar Squadron will continue to challenge all incursions into British Gibraltar Territorial Waters. The base infrastructure and the Gibraltar Squadron will continue to be modernised in line with the rest of the Royal Navy.We have interpreted visits to be those ships proceeding alongside in Gibraltar. Records show that, over the period 1 September 2017 to 1 March 2018, there were 15 occasions where Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary ships visited Gibraltar, in addition to the Gibraltar Squadron that is permanently stationed there.

Department for Work and Pensions

Children: Poverty

baroness primarolo: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many children were living in absolute poverty in each year between 2010 and 2017; and how those figures were calculated.

baroness buscombe: National statistics on the number of children in absolute low income for the period 2009/10 to 2015/16 are available in the annual "Households Below Average Income". YearNumber of children living in absolute low income before housing costs2009/102.5m2010/112.3m2011/122.6m2012/132.5m2013/142.4m2014/152.3m2015/162.3mm = a millionFigures for 2016/17 are due to be published on 22 March 2018. Absolute low income is calculated by taking the 60 per cent of median income threshold from 2010/11 and increasing this each year in line with inflation (using variants of the Consumer Price Index). This measure is designed to assess how the number of children in low income families compares with 2010/11 after taking account of inflation.

Children: Poverty

baroness primarolo: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many children were living in poverty in workless households in each year between 2010 and 2017 (1) before housing costs, and (2) after housing costs.

baroness buscombe: National statistics on the number of children living in relative low income, in workless households, before and after housing costs, for the period 2009/10 to 2015/16 have been calculated from figures published in the annual "Households Below Average Income" publication. YearNumber of children living in relative low income, in workless householdsBefore Housing CostsAfter Housing Costs2009/101.2m1.8m2010/111.0m1.5m2011/120.8m1.3m2012/130.9m1.4m2013/140.8m1.4m2014/150.9m1.3m2015/160.9m1.3mm = a millionFigures for 2016/17 are due to be published on 22 March 2018.

Cabinet Office

Electoral Register

lord rennard: To ask Her Majesty's Government on what basis the impact assessment for the Representation of the People (Amendment) Regulations 2018 estimated that the number of GPs who will make a charge for attesting to the needs for anonymous registration would be 10 per cent; and what the level of those charges will be.

lord young of cookham: The British Medical Association’s guidance recommends GPs charge between £30-£63 for this type of service, and that they consider any ethical implications of their work prior to charging for it. Given the nature of this service, for the purpose of the impact assessment we assumed a small minority (10%) of GPs to charge for an attestation, and those that do charge will do so at the lower end of the suggested range.Should an elector experience difficulties with obtaining an attestations from a GP, other avenues remain open for them to seek attestations without charge.

Charities: Freedom of Information

lord patten: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the case for extending the Freedom of Information Act 2000 to charities in receipt of public funds.

lord young of cookham: I refer my noble friend to my answer to his question 14 September 2017. [HL1315]

Department for International Trade

Trade Agreements

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government how they plan to facilitate the continuation of existing EU trade agreements with non-EU countries after Brexit; and what legal provisionsthey intend to seek toput in place to enable such continuation.

baroness fairhead: As a priority, we are currently working with our international partners to achieve continuity of the application of these agreements during the proposed Implementation Period, in order to ensure an orderly transition and provide certainty for businesses and individuals. The Government has also introduced legislation to Parliament to ensure the legal provisions are in place to support continuity of effect of these agreements once they no longer apply to the UK. The Trade Bill was introduced on 9th November 2017 and creates a power that will ensure we can secure the continuity of EU trade agreements.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Lotteries: Regulation

lord stevenson of balmacara: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to change the regulatory approach to society lotteries such as the People's Postcode Lottery to reduce limits on (1) annual turnover, and (2) size of draw.

lord ashton of hyde: We are carefully considering the issues around society lotteries raised by the Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee, including the limits on annual turnover and draw size. We will continue to take advice from the Gambling Commission as we consider policy options. We hope to conclude considerations and provide an update in due course.